Printing preventing device for predisposing the justification of the right margin in a typewriter



June 17, 1969 B. FRANCISCO PRINTING PREVENTING DEVICE FOR PREDISPOSING THE JUSTIFICATION OF THE RIGHT MARGIN IN A TYPEWRITER Filed June 2, 1966 INVENTOR. BERNARDINO FRANCISCO June 17, 1969 PRINTING- PREVENTING DEVICE FOR PREDISPOSING THE JUSTIFICATION OF THE RIGHT MARGIN IN A TYPEWRITER Filed June 2, 1966 B. FRANCISCO 3,450,245

Sheet 5 of s INVENTOR. BERNARDINO FRANC ISCO June 17, 1969 B. FRANCISCO 3,450,245

PRINTING PREVENTING DEVICE FOR PREDISPOSING THE JUSTIFICATION OF THE RIGHT MARGIN IN A TYPEWRITER 3 Filed June 2, 1966 Sheet of 3 INVENTOR. BERNARDINO FRANCISCO 'AGENT United States Patent Olfice 3,450,245 Patented June 17, 1969 US. Cl. 197-84 2 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A variable spacing typewriter, wherein the type bars are operated by a spring actuated universal bar, is provided with a manually settable justification predisposing lever. This lever when so set prevents the ribbon vibrating and feeding device from being operated and causes an intermediate member controlled by a cam to reduce the speed of the universal bar to prevent the type bar from printing, without preventing the letter spacing of the carriage. The predisposing lever is also connected to an indicating lever fulcrumed on the basket and shaped similar to the type bar. When the predisposing lever is so set, the indicating lever is rocked toward the carriage to indicate the position reached by the carriage.

The present invention relates to a printing preventing device for predisposing the justification of the right margin in a typewriter comprising a basket mounting a set of type bars individually connected to a set of corresponding type actions, each type action being conditionable for being operated by a spring actuated universal bar to cause the corresponding type bar to strike on a printing point, and a spacing mechanism operable concomitantly with the operation of said type actions.

There are known several justification devices, which normally require the text to be typed as a draft for establishing the required number of spaces to be added or subtracted to reach the predetermined right margin, and then to be retyped after having predisposed the justification device according to said number of spaces. Therefore these devices are intricate and expensive and require a very long time for being operated.

To obviate this disadvantage a justification device has been proposed, which comprises a stop for preventing the type bars from printing without preventing the escapement device from being operated, whereby the carriage advances as many spaces as required by the characters to be printed. The stop is rendered effective in the last portion of each line, whereby only this portion must be printed again after having predisposed the justification device. This device has the disadvantage that said stop must necessarily be located close to the type guide, whereby it is struck by the type bars.

Another known variable spacing typewriter embodies scale means for exactly indicating the position of the carriage for justification purpose. These scale means comprise a vernier slide, which is unable to show at a glance the right edge of a printed type.

These and other disadvantages are obviated by the printing preventing device according to the invention, which is characterized by delaying means conditionable by a manually settable member for reducing the speed of said universal bar when actuated so that the type bar of the conditioned type action does not reach said printing point, said spacing mechanism being operated for counting the number of the spacings required by a predetermined printed line.

This characteristic of the invention will become apparent from the following description of a preferred embodiment thereof, and from the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a right hand partial longitudinal sectional view of a variable spacing electric typewriter incorporating a printing preventing device according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a right hand longitudinal partial view of the typewriter of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a front partial view of the typewriter according to the line IIIIII of FIG. 1.

With reference to the FIG. 1, the printing preventing device is incorporated in a variable spacing electric typewriter of the type described in the United States patent application Ser. No. 321,221, filed Nov. 4, 1963, now Patent No. 3,288,262 issued Nov. 29, 1966 to Rinaldo Salto. The typewriter comprises a set of type actions, each one having an intermediate lever 3 fulcrumed on a stationary shaft 4 and connected by means of a link 6 to a type bar 7. This latter is fulcrumed on a semicircular pivot Wire rod 8 carried by a conventional type bar basket 9.

Furthermore, the typewriter comprises a shaft 11 which is continuously rotated counterclockwise by an electric motor not shown in the drawing. A cyclically operating mechanism comprising a sleeve 12 is adapted to be rotated cyclically degrees by the shaft 11 at the depression of each printing key, in a manner known per se. Furthermore, at the depression of said key a latch 13 fulcrumed on the corresponding intermediate lever 3 may be coupled with a universal bar 14 fulcrumed at 17. The bar 14 is adapted to be actuated by a spring 19 and is connected through a link 15 with a lever 16. This latter cooperates with a cam 18 secured to the sleeve 12 and normally locking the bar 14 at rest against the urge of the spring 19.

Upon depressing a printing key the sleeve 12 is rotated counterclockwise and the cam 18 firstly releases the lever 16, thus causing the spring 19 to freely rock the universal bar 14 counterclockwise. Then the coupled latch 13 through the lever 3 rocks the type bar 7 clockwise thus causing a type 10 to strike on the printing point of a conventional carriage comprising a platen 20'. Thereafter, the cam 18 restores the lever 16 together with the universal bar 14, thus tensioning the spring 19.

Furthermore, the typewriter is provided with a variable spacing mechanism comprising a bail 178 having variaably long teeth adapted to sense a projection 184 of the levers 3 for predisposing an escapement device not shown in the drawing, according to a number of spacings proportional to the width of the type of the corresponding type bar 7. To this end the bail 178 is connected through a link to a lever 181 cooperating with the cam 18. The spacing mechanism also comprises a lever 172 ccoperating with another cam 171 secured to the sleeve 12 and adapted to operate said escapement device in the manner described in the cited Patent No. 3,288,262, wherein the cam 171 and the lever 172 are indicated by the numeral references 71 and 72 respectively.

Slidably mounted on a conventional paper :bail 22 carried by the paper carriage is an indexing member 21, which may be secured to the bail 22 by means of a knob 23. The indexing member 21 (FIG. '3) carries a scale comprising a mark 24, arranged at the right and at the left of which is a set of marks distanced according to the unit spacings, the right hand marks being longer than the left hand marks. The indexing member 21 is located slightly over a pair of conventional card holders 25 and 26 which are symmetrically arranged with respect to a type bar guide 27 secured to the basket 9. Furthermore a stationary mark 28 is provided on the left card holder 25 for reading the indexing member 21.

The printing preventing device comprises a manipulative member formed of a lever 29 (FIG. 2) fulcrumed on a stationary shaft 31 and provided with a pin 32 connected through a link 33 to a pin 34 of a lever 36. This latter is fulcrumed at 37 and is provided with a V-shaped edge cooperating with a spring urged locking element 38 fulcrurned on a stationary shaft 39.

Linked with another pin 40 of the lever 29 is another link 41 pin and slot connected with a lever 42 fulcrumed on a stationary pivot 43. The lever 42. is linked with delaying means comprising an intermediate member or lever 47 fulcrumed at 48 on a lever 49. Particularly, a pin 46 of the lever 47 engages a slot 44 provided on the lever 42. The lever 47 is provided with a projection 51 adapted to cooperate with a pin 52 of the universal bar 14, but normally located out of the path thereof. The lever 49 is fulcrumed on a stationary pivot 53 and is normally urged by a spring 54 to contact a stationary pin 56. Furthermore, the lever 49 is provided with a projection 57 adapted to cooperate with a cam 58 secured to the sleeve 12.

The typewriter is provided with a ribbon vibrating and feeding device comprising a lever 68 secured to the shaft 69, which when rocked clockwise raises the ink ribbon in the manner described in applicants copending United States patent application, Ser. No. 554,767, filed June 2, 1966, and entitled Ribbon Feeding Device for a Variable Spacing Typewriter, wherein the lever 68 is indicated by the numeral reference 98. Furthermore the lever 68 is linked with a link 70 in turn connected, through a spring 71, to a bail 72 substantially corresponding to the bail indicated by the numeral reference 56 in the cited patent application, Ser. No. 554,767. The bail 72 is fulcrumed at 73 and adapted to be rocked firstly counterclockwise and then clockwise by a cam of the sleeve 12 not shown in the drawing. The lever 68 is provided with a lug 67 adapted to cooperate with an end 66 of a lever 63 fulcrumed on a stationary shaft 64. The lever 63 is provided with a lug 62 urged by a spring 61 to contact a projection 59 of the link 41.

The bail 72 when rocked counterclockwise causes the spring 71 to yieldably rock the lever 68 clockwise for raising the ribbon, whereas when returned clockwise, causes the ribbon to be fed in the manner described in cited patent application Ser. No. 554,767. Furthermore, the bail 72 is provided with a lug 74 adapted to cooperate with a projection 76 of a lever 77 fulcrumed on the shaft 39. The lever 77 is provided with a pin 79 normally urged by a spring 80 to contact a projection 81 of the link 33.

Finally, the typewriter is provided with normally ineffective position indicating means comprising a lever 84 (FIGS. 1 and 3) fulcrumed on the wire rod 8 and adjacent to the rightmost type bar 7. The lever 84 is connected through a link 83 with an arm 82 of the lever 29. The lever 84 is similar to the type bars 7, but instead of a type it is provided with an element or bent lug 86 adapted to indicate the right edge of the right unit spacing covered by the last printed type, in the case the carriage has not been displaced after printing said type, as shown in FIG. 3. Furthermore, the lever 84 is provided with a projection 87 (FIG. 1) adapted to be arrested by the type guide 27, to prevent the lug 86 from contacting the platen 20.

The printing preventing device operates as follows.

Normally the lever 29 is located in the position of FIG. 1, whereby the link 83 holds the lever 84 at rest. Furthermore, the link 41 (FIG. 2) on one hand through the lever 42 holds the projection 51 of the lever 47 out of the path of the pin 52, and on the other hand through the lever 63 holds the end 66 out of the path of the lug 67. Finally, the link 33 holds the lever 77 with the projection 76 out of the path of the lug 74.

For justifying the right margin of a print work, firstly the carriage is brought to the right margin and then the indexing member 21 is set transversely So as to align the mark 24 with the mark 28 of the card holder 25, as shown in the FIG. 3. Now the carriage is returned to the beginning of the line for printing the first line. When the carriage, approaching the set right margin, reaches a predetermined position, which may be signaled for example by a bell in a known manner, the lever 29 (FIG. 1) is manually set counterclockwise.

Then the lever 29 through the link 83 rocks the lever 84 which locates its lug 86 on the printing point as shown by broken lines in the FIG. 3. The left hand side of the lug 86 is thus aligned with the right band edge of the right unit spacing covered by the last printed type. In turn the link 33 (FIG. '2) is displaced rearwards and on one hand it rocks the lever 36 counterclockwise, whereby the locking member 38, through the lever 36 and the link 33, locks the lever 29 in the rocked position. In turn the projection 81 of the link 33 causes the spring to rock the lever 77 counterclockwise, whereby the projection 76 temporarily contacts the lug 74 of the bail 72.

Furthermore, the link 41 is displaced forwards, and rocks the lever 42 counterclockwise, whereby the pin 46 rocks the lever 47 counterclockwise and locates the projection 51 into the path of the pin 52 of the universal bar 14. Finally, the link 41 through the spring 61 rocks the lever 63 counterclockwise thus locating the end 66 into the path of the lug 67 of the lever 68.

Now, upon depressing a printing key, when the cam 18 (FIG. 1) releases the lever 16 and the spring 19 begins to rock the universal bar 14 counterclockwise, the pin 52 (FIG. 2) encounters the projection 51 of the lever 47. Since the spring 19 prevails over the spring 54, the projection 57 of the lever 49 is urged to contact the cam 58, which thus reduces the speed of the universal bar 14. The momentum impressed by the bar 14 to the type bar 7 (FIG. 1) is now insufficient to cause the type bar 7 to reach the lug 86 and therefore to strike in the printing point, whereby the printing is prevented.

However the cam 171 through the lever 172 operates the escapement device according to the number of unit spacings predisposed by the bail 178, while the bail 72 (FIG. 2) is rocked counterclockwise as in the case the lever 29 is at rest. Now the bail 72 cannot be followed by the link 70 since the lug 67 of the lever 68 is stopped by the end 66 of the lever 63, whereby the ribbon is not raised. The lug 74 of the bail 72 upon being rocked counterclockwise releases the projection 76 of the lever 77, which is now further rocked counterclockwise. The projection 76 locks thus the bail 72 in the rocked position, whereby the ribbon is not fed.

The portion of the line required to reach the set right margin is thus typed on the keyboard without being printed on the paper, while the carriage is spaced to establish the difference existing between the length of the remaining portion of the line and the length so established. This difference is read by means of the indexing member 21 (FIG. 3) and the mark 28 and may be either negative or positive.

Thereafter, with the lever 29 still rocked the carriage is returned rightwards to the position occupied when the lever 29 was rocked, that is with the last printed character immediately at the left of the lug 86. The lever 29 is now restored to the position shown in FIG. 1, and the above portion of the line is again typed on the keyboard, while the difference of the line is corrected in any known manner to justify the right margin.

For example, if a negative difference has been found, the spaces between the words may be increased by operating an auxiliary space bar, generally used in the variable spacing typewriters, which causes the carriage to be advanced three unit spacings instead of two unit spacings. If said negative difference cannot be covered by the spaces between the words, a conventional spacing extending device may be operated to increase the spacing of each character one unit spacing. On the contrary, if a positive difference has been found, the spaces between the words should be reduced by means of the back space key.

What I claim is:

1. In a variable spacing typewriter having a transversely traveling carriage, a paper bail carried by said carriage, a basket, a semicircular pivot wire on said basket, a set of type bars pivotally mounted on said pivot Wire, a set of type actions each one connected to one of said type bars and conditionable for operation to cause the type bar connected thereto to strike on a printing point, a reciprocable universal bar moved by a spring from a rest position to operate the type action so conditioned, a cyclically operating shaft carrying a first cam normally locking said universal bar at rest, said operating shaft being operated upon engagement of each one of said type actions firstly to release said universal bar from said first cam for being freely moved by said spring and then to cause said first cam to restore said universal bar, and a variable spacing mechanism controlled by the conditioned type action and operable by a second cam carried by said shaft for spacing said carriage, a printing preventing device for predisposing the justification of the right margin, comprising in combination:

(a) a manipulative member settable from an ineffective to an effective position,

(b) an intermediate member connected to said manipulative member so as to be located into the path of said universal bar when said manipulative member is so set,

(c) a third cam carried by said shaft for controlling said intermediate member so as to reduce the speed of said universal bar when moved by said spring so that the type bar connected to the conditioned type action does not reach said printing point,

(d) a lever fulcrumed on said pivot wire adjacent to said type bars, and having a shape substantially similar to that of said type bars,

(e) a normally ineffective element integral with said lever at the place of the type for indicating on said carriage the right edge of the last space covered by the last printed type,

(f) an indexing member variably settable on said paper bail cooperating With a stationary mark to indicate said right margin,

(g) and means connecting said manipulative member to said lever so as to rock said lever to locate said element at an effective position for indicating said right edge when said intermediate member is located into said path.

2. In a variable spacing typewriter having a transversely traveling carriage, a paper bail carried by said carriage, a basket, a semicircular pivot wire on said basket, a set of type bars pivotally mounted on said pivot wire, a type guide mounted on said basket and engageable by said type bars near the printing point for guiding the end portion of their stroke, a set of type actions each one connected to one of said type bars and conditionable for operation to cause said type bar to strike on said printing point, a reciprocable universal bar moved by a spring from a rest position to operate the type action so conditioned, a cyclically operating shaft carrying a first cam normally locking said universal bar at rest, said operating shaft being operated upon engagement of each one of said type actions firstly to release said universal bar from said first cam for being freely moved by said spring and then to cause said first cam to restore said universal bar, a variable spacing mechanism controlled by the conditioned type action and operable by said shaft for spacing said carriage a number of unit intervals corresponding to the width of the type of said conditioned type action, and a cyclically reciprocable ribbon vibrating and feeding control member, a printing preventing device for predisposing the justification of the right margin, comprising in combination:

(a) a manipulative member settable from an ineffective to an effective position,

(b) an intermediate member connected to said manipulative member so as to be located into the path of said universal bar when said manipulative member is so set,

(c) a third cam carried by said shaft for controlling said intermediate member so as to reduce the speed of said universal bar when moved by said spring so that the type bar connected to the conditioned type action does not reach said printing point,

(d) a lever fulcrumed on said pivot wire adjacent to said type bars and having a shape substantially similar to that of said type bars,

(e) a normally ineffective element integral with said lever at the place of the type for indicating on said carriage the right edge of the last space being covered by the last printed type,

(f) an indexing member variably settable on said paper bail,

(g) a scale on said indexing member having marks distanced according to said unit interval,

(h) a stationary mark readable in cooperation with said scale to state the number of unit spacings required to reach a predetermined length of printed line,

(i) means connecting said manipulative member to said lever so as to rock said lever to cause said element to engage said type guide to indicate said right edge when said intermediate member is located into said path,

(j) and means controlled by said manipulative member when so set for preventing said ribbon vibrating and feeding control member from being reciprocated.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 613,365 11/1898 Felbel 197 111 959,829 5/1910 Young 197169 1,060,806 5/1913 Young "197-169 2,217,160 10/1940 Dodge 197-188X 2,834,448 5/1958 Leglise 197- 111X 2,879,879 3/1959 Dodge 197183 3,108,871 1/1962 Baker 197-111X 3,151,722 10/1964 Salto 197 17 3,190,429 6/1965 Madison etal. 197-108 3,288,262 11/1966 Salto 19784 ERNEST T. WRIGHT, JR., Primary Examiner.

US. C1.X.R. 197183, 187, 188 

